Felipe Gonzales, 23, left, Matthew Santos, 24, and Carlos Gonzales, 25, are Marine veterans who live together and work for Richard Ashoff's fluorescent-lamp-manufacturing company in Irvine. After serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, the veterans, who knew each other through friends and family, now work together. KEVIN LARA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Marine veterans Nico DeTour and Felipe Gonzales examine parts as they assemble BANFAlites at TylerCo Inc. in Irvine. The two, who served in Afghanistan, are among several veterans who work at Richard Ashoff's company. JEBB HARRIS, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Irvine inventor Richard Ashoff is manufacturing his BANFAlite fluorescent lamp for commercial stairwells. The lamp only goes to full power when its motion dectector detects that the stairwells are occupied. The lamps are installed in existing fixtures and are assembled by Marine veterans. JEBB HARRIS, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Matthew Santos, 24, left, and Nico DeTour, 25, both Marine veterans, look at names of fallen service members at the Northwood Gratitude and Honor Memorial in Irvine during a break from work. KEVIN LARA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Matthew Santos, left, Felipe Gonzales, Carlos Gonzales and Brenton Beever get back to work at Richard Ashoff's company, where the veterans help manufacture fluorescent lamps with motion sensors. Hanging above the crew is the flag of the Kilo platoon, of the 3/5 Marines. KEVIN LARA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

About two years ago Richard Ashoff invented an energy-saving fluorescent lamp, which he calls the BANFAlite, and his basic goal with the invention was – and is – to get rich. He’s a business guy, not a veteran.

At 60, the UC Irvine graduate and Balboa Island resident, who’s made and lost a lot of money on ventures involving, among other things, stained glass, beveled glass and slab lighting, missed being drafted into the Vietnam War. In fact, he says, “I did everything I could to avoid being drafted.”

But when Ashoff came up with the idea of BANFAlites, which he says can slash energy costs for stairwell lighting by 95percent because of a motion sensor that reduces the amount of time they’re lit, he had a problem on his hands.

Ashoff tapped business contacts in China to manufacture the components for his lights. He had the components sent to his 2,000-square-foot office warehouse in Irvine for final assembly.

In June, Ashoff received components to put together 1,000 BANFAlites.

After several hours, his output was easy to count – one.

Ashoff, a gregarious man with a quick laugh and a friendly but firm office demeanor, had a thought:

“Oops, I’m going to need some help.”

• • •

Ashoff’s longtime business and life partner, Kim Marconi, suggested that her son, Nico DeTour, might be a good fit.

DeTour, 25, served as a dog handler in Afghanistan, leading a canine that sniffed out IEDs and other lethal weapons. When Ashoff approached, DeTour had recently returned to the U.S. and had no solid work options. So he agreed to work with Ashoff.

And within a couple of days, when DeTour saw the task at hand, he said this to his new boss:

“I know some other guys.”

DeTour tapped Felipe Gonzales, who recruited his brother, which led to two other vet friends joining the company: Brenton Beever, 28, and Matthew Santos, 24.

As they sat at the table, making the lights, something besides manufacturing began to happen.

“When they first came in,” Ashoff says, “all of these guys looked lost, scared.

“Not anymore.”

Scared? In Irvine? It hardly seems possible.

Felipe Gonzales and Santos served together in the 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines. Carlos Gonzales, DeTour and Beever were attached to the 3rd Battalion, 5th Marines. Both infantry battalions are based out of Camp Pendleton. All but Beever were deployed twice to combat zones.

All lost many Marine brothers and sisters during combat.

But studies show being home isn’t easy either. Veterans face tough odds on issues such as suicide, substance abuse and unemployment.

The men at the table knew veterans who committed suicide after returning home. The fear of life stateside is legit.

“The demons,” Felipe Gonzales says, “can get the best of you.”

• • •

A flag from Kilo Company, 1st Platoon, of the 3rd Battalion, 5th Marines, hangs over the work table at TylerCo Inc. Carlos Gonzales put it up there. Another wall is dominated by a large U.S. Marine Corps flag.

And in the center of the table there’s a smaller, unmarked cloth they call the “(whiner) flag,” which the guys toss at each other when someone is deemed to be complaining too much.

As former Marines, they’re trained to suck things up.

That might come in handy as production ramps up.

Ashoff’s lights have been installed in the stairwells of a handful of buildings, including the Hall of Administration in Santa Ana and The Plaza condominium tower in Irvine. There are an estimated 58 million fluorescent lights in commercial stairwells in the United States, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.

If Ashoff’s business takes off he plans to put a lot more veterans to work.

Ashoff calls his group of five veterans a “pod” and has dubbed his work program “Take a Breath,” billing the job as a chance for returning service personnel to get on their feet and heal before finding their way back.

To that end, he’s become a sympathetic ear; maybe a bit of a father figure.

At the end of each workweek the guys sit at the table with Ashoff, sharing a few beers and talking. Ashoff, the non-veteran inventor, urges his guys to be safe and responsible; to stay out of trouble.

He says he wants them to be good examples.

• • •

They are.

The Gonzales brothers and Santos share an apartment in Fullerton. Carlos Gonzales is taking business classes at Orange Coast College. Santos also attends that school.

DeTour lives in Irvine. Beever – married with two children – lives in Menifee.

Felipe Gonzales says none of the five has gotten into any serious trouble – and none wants to. Marines, they say, often get challenged to prove their toughness in bars. In fact, Carlos Gonzales recently visited a close friend and fellow Afghanistan veteran who suffered a stab wound in a bar fight.

Ashoff has a rule: Fight, and you’re fired.

“It’s time for these young men to grow up,” he says.

Rather than spending most of their time outside of work looking for trouble, the five BANFAlite assemblers spend a lot of time networking with other veterans.

They also seem to be getting a lot of attention from people with no vested interest in TylerCo, who plop into the shop unannounced.

Jimmy Olang, executive chef at 24 Carrots, an Irvine catering company, brings over lunch every day, selling the food at cost. Joe Yocam, an employee at nearby California Box, a shipping box company, brings pastries a couple of times a week. Brian Willard, a local CPA, comes in and sits at the table and helps put together lights.

“They just show up and contribute,” Ashoff says.

Ashoff is working on plans to set up another pod of BANFAlite-assembling veterans. He hopes to take his business model nationwide.

His workers have big-picture missions as well.

The Gonzales brothers, who grew up in the border town Nogales, Ariz., hope to set up a BANFAlite pod in Tuscon. Felipe wants to reach out to older veterans who served in Vietnam and other wars. Carlos wants to help vets his age.

Ashoff turns emotional when he talks about his employees.

“Sometimes,” he says, “it’s not about manufacturing.”

• • •

Shooting pool after work, Felipe and Carlos, who wears a bracelet inscribed with the names of fallen Marines, talk about how being around and working with fellow veterans has made a difference in their lives.

“Just like we were in Afghanistan, we’re here for each other,” Felipe says.

Then Felipe has to raise his voice to be heard over the music playing in the background; Buffalo Springfield’s “For What It’s Worth,” a Vietnam-era protest song.

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